Tuesday, July 10, 2018

Canal Bank Walk

I was reminded of this poem I studied for my Leaving Cert as I took a leisurely power walk down the canal bank with Audrey the other evening.

Canal Bank Walk

Leafy-with-love banks and the green waters of the canalPouring redemption for me, that I doThe will of God, wallow in the habitual, the banal,Grow with nature again as before I grew.The bright stick trapped, the breeze adding a thirdParty to the couple kissing on an old seat,And a bird gathering materials for the nest for the WordEloquently new and abandoned to its delirious beat.O unworn world enrapture me, encapture me in a webOf fabulous grass and eternal voices by a beech,Feed the gaping need of my senses, give me ad libTo pray unselfconsciously with overflowing speechFor this soul needs to be honoured with a new dress woven From green and blue things and arguments that cannot be proven.

Patrick Kavanagh

It really was a glorious evening for a walk.

And before you ask
"NO! Audrey WASN'T topless. She just didn't want to get strap marks!"